Nissan Safety Shield gives you 360-degree driver vision

Nissan hopes to transform in-vehicle safety with its newly launched Safety Shield package. The technology, which will ship with the new Nissan Note, brings a package of top of the line safety features to an affordable car.

Safety Shield comprises three parts. First is a blind-spot warning which can detect a vehicle in areas outside your wing mirror's vision. It will then switch on a warning light in the glass of the Note's wing mirror. Try to change lanes while something is in your blind spot and the Note will make a noise to alert you.

The next is to do with lane departure, and will let you know if you start drifting out of the correct lane or driving position. The system can also adjust by road type to suit driving style, depending on conditions.

The final part - and this is where the 30-degree vision element comes in - is the Around View Monitor System. Should you start to reverse when someone is moving behind the car, the Note will make a sound to warn you. We know this sounds like a normal parking aid, but this can track moving objects.

All the systems are controlled by one single, convex lens mounted on the back of the Note. The convex nature of the lens means that it gives the Around View system a 180-degree field of vision. Nissan has also designed a dirt-scanning system which will clean the lens whenever it becomes dirty, so it always functions perfectly.

The baby of the Lint team, Hunter has been a tech fan since he bought his first MiniDisc..and what a waste of money that was. He began writing about electronics at the age of 16 and hasn't stopped since. Nowadays he fulfils his mobile phone and gaming obsession whilst attempting to distract people from his bizarre name. Regular meetings with the Gladiators crew see Hunter often returning to work battered and bruised. Considers himself a music obsessive, was once the most highly decorated scout in the country. Fan of trousers.